No privatisation for Tasmania

By Leon Compton and Tim Walker

"Let me be clear: we will not be selling any government or public owned assets." With those words new Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman took the privatisation plans presented by Joe Hockey off the agenda. Tasmania's lucrative and renewable energy business, 'the hydro' will stay in the public sector.

Premier Will Hodgman has made it clear that the new state government is not interested in Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey's offer to states of a 15 per cent bonus on any state assets sold to fund new infrastructure investments.

Speaking to Leon Compton on Statewide Mornings, Mr Hodgman said Tasmania will not be selling any state owned businesses or infrastructure, other than Aurora, which had been flagged and unsuccessfully offered for sale by the previous government.

"We haven't yet seen the detail of this proposal, but let me be clear: we will not be selling any government or public owned assets, other than the Aurora retail book."

The Federal Government has recently made the announcement and has received a mixed reaction from state counterparts.

With Liberal governments in every state except South Australia, Mr Hockey has delivered impassioned pleas to the state treasurers, saying that Australia is in dire need of infrastructure investment.

He says he has won the support of his state counterparts for the privatisation of assets, and that the 'historic agreement' with state and territory treasurers will see tens of billions of dollars of new infrastructure built across the country.

The Tasmanian Government owns Hydro Tasmania, the electricity utility responsibile for the generation of electricity, as well as the delivery service company, Transend.

"We won't be selling any government or public owned assets, other than the Aurora retail book which the former government put up for sale, and which we've supported.

"Other than that we will not be selling anything, and that is part of the commitment we took to the last election," says Mr Hodgman.

This story has been edited as of 2 April 2014 to correct mistakes in the copy